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VIDEO

How to Build Walk-in Closet Storage

This Old House general contractor Tom Silva shows how to maximize closet space with plywood shelves and boxes

general contractor Tom SilvaThis Old House television

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In this video, This Old House general contractor Tom Silva and host Kevin O'Connor build a storage system for a walk-in closet.

Steps:1. Cut the plywood parts to size using a circular saw and clamp-in-place straightedge.2. Use a clothes iron set to the cotton setting (no steam) to adhere 13/16-inch iron-on veneer onto the plywood edges.3. Sand the veneer flush with the plywood using a sanding block and 120-grit sandpaper.4. Use a router fitted with a ¾-inch straight bit to rout rabbets and stopped dadoes in the vertical sides of the cabinets.5. Cut a small notch, called a haunch cut, in the front corner of the shelves using a jigsaw.6. Install a counter-balanced, fold-down wardrobe lift to the inside surface of the upper sides.7. Screw the cabinet parts together using a drill/driver and 2-inch drywall screws.8. Attach a ½-inch plywood back to the rear of the cabinets using 1 ⅝-inch drywall screws.9. Screw fixed closet rod hardware to the inside surface of the lower cabinets. 10. Set the assembled cabinets into the closet and fasten them together with 1¼-inch screws and then to the wall studs with 3-inch screws.11. Mount the horizontal closet rods to the fold-down wardrobe lifts.12. Install slide-out shoe racks in the lower cabinets, and slide-out pant racks at waist height.